SAKHALIN URBAN PLANNING CONCEPT THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW CITY IN THE SAKHALIN REGION HAS CHOSEN ITS WINNER.
On December 16, in Moscow, the results of the Open International Competition for the development of an architectural and urban planning concept for the new city in the Sakhalin Region were summed up.
The Expert Council, chaired by Alexey Rakitsky, Minister of Architecture and Urban Development of the Sakhalin Region, selected the winner out of five finalists. According to the voting results, the Consortium led by IND Architects LLC (Moscow, Russia), which included Knight Frank JSC (Moscow, Russia); John Thompson & Partners (London, United Kingdom); SPI Planning Group (Offer Dialog LLC) (Vladivostok, Russia); Concrete Jungle LLC (Vladivostok, Russia); DA! Architects (Shanghai, China) and HPBS (Moscow, Russia).
Natural features and relief, unique in their beauty and richness, as well as a favorable geopolitical position, make Sakhalin and Ecopolis, in particular, the most important point on the map of Russia and the world. Ecopolis is a large structure for the exchange of data and information, a platform for discoveries and a testing ground, where every inhabitant is a full-fledged participant. The concept embodies ambitious goals for climate change adaptation and circulation that ensures environmental, social and economic efficiency and sustainability.
Summing up the results of the competition, Chairman of the Expert Council of the Competition, Minister of Architecture and Urban Development of the Sakhalin Region Alexei Rakitsky noted that “the work that lasted a whole year with the participants, by its nature, had a very great potential. We have achieved the goal that we set for the organizers and participants of the Competition – creation of an architectural and urban planning concept for a new macro-district of the city. It was very important for us to show what the development of the city of Korsakov could be in the Sakhalin Region. I think we have not failed.”
“The international competition for the development of a new city is being held in Russia for the first time. There are such examples in international practice. The goal was to create an architectural and urban planning concept for a new type of city. It will be a macrodistrict of the city of Korsakov, as part of the Yuzhno-Sakhalin agglomeration in the south of Sakhalin. And as an example of a dynamic, developing city in the Far East and in general in the Asia-Pacific region. Ecopolis is a modern city that will be built using modern environmental technologies of both Russian and international companies. It will be a place to live and work. As a result, we’ll be able to create a typical model city that can be replicated on different scales in the Far East and in other regions,” emphasized Vyacheslav Alenkov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Sakhalin Region.
In February 2021, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Yury Trutnev announced that a new ecopolis would be built in the south of the Sakhalin Region, which has political, strategic and economic importance for Russia. An Open International Competition for the development of an architectural and urban planning concept for the new city in the Sakhalin Region was launched on May 18.
The project was personally initiated by the Governor Valery Limarenko. The new city will be built as part of a large-scale project carried out by the Sakhalin Region Development Corporation and the Ministry of Architecture and Urban Development of the Sakhalin Region. The work was carried out by a consortium, which included Agency for Strategic Development CENTER and the Institute for the General Plan of Moscow.
The head of the Korsakov urban district, Alexander Ivashov, noted that “thousands of cities with a population like Korsakov’s are engaged in urban planning activities to one degree or another on a daily basis. We are very lucky that before amending the Korsakov’s master plan, we have this Open International Competition, as a result of which an architectural and urban planning concept will appear, which will form the basis for changes in the city’s urban planning documentation. Very professional teams from different countries have been working on this. This is a unique opportunity to create a comfortable place to live and a very interesting place to attract investment. Thanks to the Competition, we can give Korsakov a new breath, which it certainly deserves. We hope that, taking into account the attention to this issue at such a high level, there is every chance that the ideas that appeared during the international competition will be really implemented in the near future.”
Russian and international experts considered 22 applications that included 73 companies from 12 countries. Five international consortia, including 33 companies from 6 countries – Russia, Great Britain, China, Germany, USA and Japan – reached the final.
“For the first time, we are holding an open competition for the creation of a new city. An unprecedented case when the creation of a new municipality arises through an open international competitive procedure. We received not just five brilliant works, but a huge bank of ideas that can be used in the interests of not only this city, but also the region as a whole. This wealth will multiply the identity of the Sakhalin Region and the Korsakov district. It will give a new way of life in this region in the Far East,” emphasized Sergei Georgievskii, co-founder of CENTER Group of Companies.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Sakhalin Region and Korsakov
Sakhalin Region is an island region that forms part of Far Eastern Federal District and which is located at the eastern border of the Russian Federation. The region has an advantageous geostrategic position in the Asia-Pacific region, through which it can participate in fast growing economic relations. The region is located in the area of the potential convergence of three new transport corridors which are global mega projects: the Northern Sea Route, the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative, and the Japanese Initiative on Port Connectivity and Creation of Economic Corridors.
The Korsakov urban district includes 18 urban areas: 17 villages and the city of Korsakov, which is the administrative center of the urban district. The city of Korsakov is the second largest city in Sakhalin Region, with a population of 34,000 people. The seaport of Korsakov, which operates year-round, is one of the largest and strategically most important ports in Sakhalin. This new development project will bring the region to a new level.
Sakhalin Region Development Corporation
The goal of investment activities of AO Sakhalin Region Development Corporation is to stimulate investment and ensure economic growth in the Sakhalin Region and the Far Eastern Federal District, promote the development of economic potential and strengthen economic relations of the Sakhalin Region, the Far Eastern Federal District, and the Russian Federation in the Asia-Pacific region. The Corporation’s investment policy is based on a strategy of preserving and increasing capital premised on achieving target return while minimizing risks. AO Sakhalin Region Development Corporation implements investment projects that guarantee multiplicative socio-economic effects.
Agency for Strategic Development “CENTER”
The Agency for Strategic Development “CENTER” is a Russian analytical and consulting organization that works on multi-purpose projects in the sphere of development and urban planning, in addition to being one of the top operators of various architecture, urban planning, and design competitions. The Agency CENTER was founded in Moscow in 2014 It deals with matters related to comprehensive land and real estate development and to the quality of the urban environment in more than 60 Russian regions. The Agency’s portfolio features projects commissioned by major developers, investment companies, land and facility owners, federal and regional authorities, and professional communities. When working on a few of these projects, CENTER joined forces with the governments of the Russian constituent entities and the Russian Ministry of Construction and the Housing and Utilities Sector, as strategic partners.
Genplan Institute of Moscow
The Genplan Institute of Moscow has been engaged in complex development of urban planning documents for about 70 years. The Institute has significantly contributed to the development of Moscow and the Moscow Region by designing major objects in the capital. The Institute is the only design organization in the country that supports the process of developing, monitoring, and implementing the General Plan of Moscow on a consistent basis. By now the geography of the Institute’s activities has significantly expanded: it has created general plans of Kazan, Sevastopol, Almetyevsk, Voronezh, and Nizhny Novgorod, area planning designs for Sarov, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, and Vyborg, designs of buffer zones of heritage sites in the Republic of Dagestan and the Sakhalin Region, and the entire array of urban planning documentation for Ufa and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. An integral part of the Institute’s activities is scientific research and formulation of proposals for improving regulatory frameworks and methodological support.
The project is being implemented in accordance with Agreement No. KRSO-49/2021-ZAK of March 15, 2021, concluded between the Sakhalin Region Development Corporation JSC and Agency for Strategic Development CENTER LLC in respect of the research project Development of Five Architectural and Urban Planning Concepts for a New City in Sakhalin Region.
Additional questions and information:
Irma Kvantaliani
Press secretary of the Agency for strategic development CENTER
+7 (495) 123 45 53 ad. 53
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